Sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that veteran Jeremy Stephens (20-7 MMA, 7-6 UFC) has been tapped to replace Edwards.

UFC on FUEL TV 3 takes place May 15 at Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va. The event’s main card airs live on FUEL TV while preliminary-card fights are expected to stream on Facebook.

It’s not clear where Stephens vs. Cerrone will be situated on the lineup.
Edwards had hoped to rebound from a decision loss to “The Ultimate Fighter 13″ winner Tony Ferguson. The longtime UFC vet had previously stopped Rafaello Oliveira by TKO at UFC on Versus 6.

Once considered the uncrowned UFC lightweight champ in the UFC lightweight division’s dark days, Edwards fell on hard times in 2005 and 2006 and was forced to work his way back to the UFC. He eventually did so, making good on a short-notice fight at UFC Fight Night 22. Since then, he’s gone 3-2 in the octagon and once earned dual bonuses for “Submission of the Night” and “Fight of the Night” in a victory over Cody McKenzie at UFC Fight Night 23.

Stephens is also on the mend after a split-decision loss to the surging Anthony Pettis, who knocked out Joe Lauzon this past weekend at UFC 144 for an almost certain No. 1 contender spot.

Although not always successful against top-ranked competition, Stephens has carved out a firm spot in the lightweight division with four performance bonuses and wins over Sam Stout, Marcus Davis and Cole Miller. He currently trains at Victory MMA and Alliance MMA in San Diego.

Cerrone, meanwhile, saw an impressive six-fight win streak come to an end when he was outstruck and outpointed by Nate Diaz at UFC 141. The loss halted what many fans believed was a march toward title contention (Diaz is now slated to fight Jim Miller in a fight that could have an impact on the title picture.) A two-time title challenger in the now-defunct WEC, “Cowboy” trains at Jackson/Winkeljohn’s MMA in Albuquerque, N.M.